There is a well established need to provide a munition, having a projectile which can impact a target with a low likelihood of inflicting a lethal blow. The need for such a munition can be seen in numerous situations, such as military and police applications, self-defense and even animal control. A desirable, less-lethal shot gun munition would be able to impart a stopping or disabling force on the target.
The art includes numerous examples of various projectiles, which are designed to impact the target with a less lethal force. One type of shotgun round designed for less-lethal applications includes substituting a conventional shot gun slug with a flexible deformable sack which may contain particulate matter. The sack is designed to deform upon impact with the target, imparting a blow without significant penetration. Examples of such less-lethal rounds are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,202,562 and 6,283,037.
Other examples of less-lethal shot gun rounds include slugs manufactured from deformable materials, which deform or spread out upon impact, thereby reducing incidences of penetration upon impact. An example of such rounds is shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,952,662 and 5,691,501. Additionally, other rounds include destructible slugs carrying fluid or other substances within. Recreational paint balls are an example of such destructible projectiles and which are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,254,379 and 6,546,874.
Each of the projectiles of the prior art, which are designed to be less lethal, suffer from certain disadvantages. First, the projectile or slug itself is complicated and expensive to manufacture, as compared with traditional shot gun slugs. Second, many of the known, less-lethal rounds require use of specialized non-standard weapons.
It is, therefore, desirable to provide a less-lethal munition which is easy to manufacture and provides effective, less-lethal kinetic impact at close range.